Kiran Rai aka Bhudeu, 18, of Patheka -2 in Khotang district, who was charged with murder and rearrested on June 11, died on July 10 while undergoing treatment at Diktel Hospital.[break]
NHRC has recommended action against the policemen after an autopsy report showed that Rai died due to physical torture meted out to him during police custody.
The other implicated policemen include Sub-inspectors Mahendra Khatri and Mukunda Prasad Bidari, Constable Suresh Prasad Yadav and rank and file Nakul Rai, Ram Kumar Bogati, Kailash Khatri, Chandra Khadka, Dev Raj Majhi and Narayan Khadka.The rights body has also recommended departmental action against then DSP Rajiv Basnet and Police Inspector Ramesh Kumar Dev, informed Loknath Ghimire, acting chief of NHRC sub-regional office in Diktel.
Similarly, NHRC has also recommended to the government to provide Rs 300,000 to Rai´s family in compensation. According to NHRC, a post-mortem report prepared by forensic experts Dr Hari Osti, Dr Yuvaraj Pokharel and Dr Nawalkishor Jha showed that Rai died due to internal injury inflicted in the course of physical torture while under custody.
In its report, NHRC has mentioned that Rai died due to ´multiple injuries in the lower limbs caused by a blunt object´. Rai´s relatives had requested NHRC to look into the cause of death. Doctors from outside the district were then brought to Khotang to conduct an autopsy four days after the death. A team from NHRC headquarters also arrived in Khotang to investigate the incident.
However, police have been claiming that Rai died of pneumonia. Rai had fled from custody and was rearrested from Buipa.
According to an eyewitness, police had been beating up Rai all along the way from Buipa to the police office after his rearrest.
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